Gunmen attack Pakistani journalist, killing driver

LAHORE, Pakistan — Gunmen on a motorcycle opened fire overnight on a car carrying a senior journalist in eastern Pakistan, killing his driver before escaping, police said Saturday.

The Associated Press

LAHORE, Pakistan — Gunmen on a motorcycle opened fire overnight on a car carrying a senior journalist in eastern Pakistan, killing his driver before escaping, police said Saturday.

Senior police officer Chaudhry Mohammed Shafiq said that journalist Raza Rumi escaped unhurt in late Friday's attack in Lahore, the capital of eastern Punjab province. The attack on Rumi, an anchorman at Express News, came as he was leaving the private TV channel's offices, he said.

No one has claimed responsibility, but such threats and attacks against journalists are common in Pakistan, blamed on Islamic militants and armed ethnic factions. Rumi has been critical of Pakistani militant organizations.

The latest attack came days after the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists urged the government to take steps for ensuring journalists' safety.

Also Saturday, a roadside bomb targeting a security force vehicle in the southwestern city of Quetta killed a teenage girl and wounded 18 people, police officer Mohammed Afzal said. It was not immediately clear whether any security personnel were harmed in the attack, he said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but ethnic Baluch militants have waged an insurgency in the impoverished Baluchistan province for a greater share of the province's wealth and natural resources. The province is also believed to be a hiding place for Pakistani militants and the Afghan Taliban.